Soul Matters
by Flighty Sea Bird
Summary: Death can teach you more about your self than you ever thought possible. Just because you're a clone, doesn't mean you're not human. AU end of season one story.
1. Chapter 1

**This is a one shot, I hope you all like it.**

His body felt weird after Savage tried to infect him with the nanotech. He was immune; the team had vaccinated him, so why did he fell so…unsteady. Green Lantern held him in tight restraint, probably the only thing keeping him upright. Fighting against the other hero's grip was making him feel very nauseas, and pain was beginning to blossom behind his eyes. Well, Red Arrow had been awake for over 24 hours, and had taken quite the beating from Aquaman. Maybe it was just another concussion? Hopefully, that was it. Concussions were easy, something he could work through. Lights flashed behind his eyes as chaos started scrabbling thoughts in his brain. Okay, this is definitely not a concussion. This could warrant a trip to the infirmary, but that would have to wait until the battle was over.

Green Lantern released them once Savage thought he was back in control. Red Arrow stood there dazed for several second before watching Canary go for the attack. He should fallow suit… why were his legs not responding. Batman was coming right for him. His movements were a little slower then usual, but Red Arrow didn't have the strength to fight back. It wasn't a hard hit. All things considered Batman hardly hit him, but Red was falling back, and before his chaotic mind could register any pain, everything went black.

Midnight, an ambiguous time, technically morning, but one of the darkest parts of night. New Years on midnight, well that's another story, a time of renewal and celebration. The Team had triumphed! Wally finally found his little own little Spitfire, and Raquel found new friends she decided should could like very much. No one noticed their friend hadn't joined their celebration. At least, not a first. Black Canary saw the prone form still on the ground. It wasn't like Roy to stay down, something was wrong. A sick nausea clenched in her stomach, he was too still. "Ro…Red Arrow?" she questioned kneeling down. She'd seen Batman hit him. A disarming blow at best, he didn't even put his full force into it.

"Roy," she whispered, "are you all right?" He was dead weight as she tried to shake up awake. There was only a thin trickle of blood from his nose to indicate anything was wrong. This got Robin's attention.

"Hey guys, Red Arrow is still down." Robin called to his teammates as he made his way next to fallen companion.

"I can carry him to Med Bay," Superboy offered.

"Wait," Canary stopped Superboy quietly. He could see the fear in her eyes. "We don't know what's wrong, moving him may do more harm." Robin gently lifted the mask covering his old friend's eyes only to find wide blue eyes starting at nothing. Kalder moved next to Robin, and put a hand on the younger hero's back as Canary checked for a pulse. She gasped after a moment and then hung her head. She couldn't cry now, she had to be strong for the teens.

"I'm sorry, Robin, Kalder, Red Arrow is…" She couldn't finish as a sob threatened to break free. Kalder closed his best friend's eyes, it was the least he could do, even if it felt so…final….Roy had only now accomplished his goal. He had so much a head of him.

M'gann came up, "A mind can only take so much chaos," she managed to get out as tears flowed down her cheeks. "Couldn't you feel it?" The other shook their heads. Artemis, still in Wally's arms, buried her head in his chest, as he clutched her tighter.

"Roy," a voice called out through the darkness, he couldn't tell if it was a male or female voice. "Roy Harper." The voice called again as a bright light filled his vision. He as still dazed, the last thing he remembered was Batman's fist coming at his face, but it never made contact. "I was not expecting to see you so soon."

"What happened?" Roy called out, trying to sound fierce but coming off as exhausted.

"You are transitioning." The light called out again in an emotionless voice.

"Am I….dead?" He suddenly sounded defeated.

"Yes." The light simply stated again. "Let me take a form you humans are more familiar with." The ball of light morphed into a beautiful blond woman with large, ethereal, feathery wings.

"Wait, are you an Angel?" The form seemed mildly amused for a moment by this notion.

"That is what humans like to call me, so yes, I believe Angel is an appropriate term. However, we call our selves The First Beings."

"So…Does this mean God is real? Am I going to heaven now or something?"

"Yes, as humanity calls, God is real. God is our architect of life. But God, as you beings call, has trillions of beings that were… sparked in to life so to speak, so has gifted all creation with adaptation, evolution, and free will. God created the spark, you may simply see God manifest now as… well… energy I suppose, gravity as well, the forces that power life and bring it together."

"So, I really am going to heaven?" Roy was surprised, part of him always kind of thought he'd end up in the other place.

"The notions of haven or hell only exist in the minds of humans. Matter is neither created nor destroyed, simply changed. All life is born inherently good; free will however, can change a consciousness."

"Great, I'm getting a physics lecture from an Angel."

"What I'm trying to explain Roy Harper, is that I'm here to guide your Life Spark to its next place. Your body and consciousness will soon cease, but your Life Spark will go on. We often place them into newly born beings; in some cases if the Spark is fading we can change it into the stars themselves."

"This is all so much, you're saying you're here to guide my soul, I'm guessing, to a new body?"

"Yes, soul what you like to call it."

"I'm a clone," Roy sighed out. "I was never born; I was created in a lab. I can't have a soul."

"You lived and breathed, you were alive, doesn't matter how you were born, just that you were born. The human's traditional way or not, you exited, therefore you have a soul, as you cal it. One I created myself as a matter of fact. You were so unusual I used energy from a dying sun to produce a strong, new soul."

"But, I'm a clone." He tried to defy. The Angle finally smiled and shook her head.

"You may have another like you, two actually, but you are all simply twins in our eyes. At your core, you share the same physical make up, but you are all different people."

"But what about the original Roy Harper, is he alive?"

"He lives, I've not guided his Life Spark to another yet nor do I expect to for sometime. I do often forget humans can only see in linear time. With me now, you can see the life in the other beings around you." Roy looked around finally realizing he was still in the Watchtower. He watched as Black Canary walked over to his body and tried to shake him awake. She was surrounded in what looked like a shimmering green light.

"So that light around Canary is her soul?"

"Yes, all your friends have one." Roy looked around and saw everyone surrounded a different colored simmering light. Kalder's was almost a bright yellow, similar to Robin's, Conner's was orangey red, Wally's, a bluer green than Canary's, but Artemis was almost solid sliver.

"Why is she sliver?" The Angle smiled again.

"That what you looked like to me… a young soul, still pure. You have so many questions, although, it is to be expected. Do you want to know how you died?" Roy nodded his head still in amazement, he could see his friend's souls. They all burned so bright.

"As you learned before you died, you were controlled through a mental programming, well between the overrides that being M'gann did, and the attempted recontrolling, all sent your brain into overload and the blood vessels burst. Even the strongest minds can only handle so much chaos." Roy was now aware he could also hear his old friends.

"A mind can only take so much chaos." He heard M'gann say. They were all crying, for him.

"I don't deserve this," Roy whispered to himself.

"Why not?" The Angel sounded confused. A small frown smeared her ethereal face. "Those are your friends Roy Harper. Your brother has never known them."

"Well, he did know Robin. But I'm just a cheap copy, a fake knock off."

"Human, I don't give a Life Spark to fake beings. You are a human; you were given a true soul, different than your twin's soul. Your brother Roy Harper has a much older soul, one that belonged to many before him. You also become your own person; your chronologically older brother is different than you. You're both brash and reckless at times, he is slightly more emotional, acting on impulse, and you are more rational, stopping to think about the consequences. Through better schooling, you grew more intelligent than your brother. The mind a human is born with is never fixed; it can be nurtured and changed based on the events and people in its lives. I have seen you both yes, but that is how I know you are different."

Roy paused to comprehend what the Angel was explaining. Was he really his own person? He watched as Ollie came in to the room. Roy had to turn away as his ex-partner fell to his knees. Even he was mourning the clone's death. Canary walked over and wrapped her arms around the hunched green archer. She still, somehow, managed to hold back her emotions. Batman came over and placed a hand on Ollie's back. "We should move him to med bay," Batman said quietly. All he got back was a struggled nod.

"Clone or not, he's… my son," Ollie sniffed to Canary.

"I agree," Canary murmured back. "He was like a son to me as well, and I love him all the same."

"Still think you don't matter?" The Angel asked as Roy turned away. So much uncertainty, was everyone this confused when they died? "Yes." The Angle replied again. Great, now she could read his thoughts. "We do have to get going; I need to reassign you to a new body. She's being born as we speak."

"I thought you said time wasn't linear for you."

"For me know, I see life at all stages, but for humans it flows like a river. I can't change how a human perceives time."

"One last thing?"

"Yes, alright."

"Do they ever find the real Roy Harper?"

"Yes, you have a third twin, only he thinks of himself as your uncle, Jim Harper. In a couple days time he will find out his true nature and take up the search. In the future he will meet with the one you call Cheshire, and she works hard to train him into a true I suppose Ninja would be the human term, and they will eventually find your common twin. Had circumstances been different, had you not died, you also would have eventually found your brother. But your unexpected death has shifted some events around." Roy seemed to settle down at this news. The pain he held, from learning of his origins, had finally started to dissipate.

"I think I'm ready to go now." Roy stated stoically. "I won't remember any of my past life once I'm born again, will I?"

"No… well… every now and then, when your new conciseness dreams, she'll remember something. You family will never forget you either."

Everything went dark again, but not like the total darkness of death. This was warm. There was a beeping noise and somewhere off in the distance a lady screamed. A light opened up and the being went through to the light.

"Congratulations," the doctor said. "You have a healthy baby girl." The woman beamed in joy.

"Welcome to the world little Rowena."

End

 **I was thinking of writing the story of How Jim Harper and Cheshire find the real Roy Harper, would anyone be interested in this?**


	2. Epilogue

**5 years later**

"Bulls-eye!" A squeaky, little voice exulted, as foam dart hit Dinah right between the eyes.

"Rowie," a stern, matronly voice scolded. "What did you do, go up now and apologize."

"But Mummy," the little voice pleaded with a whine, "Charlie dared me to do it."

"I don't care what Charlie did! You walk up to that lady and apologize. Right now, young lady!"

Soft footsteps shuffled up to her and tugged on the edge of her shirt. Dinah knelt down and looked at the small child before her. She had a mop of strawberry blond hair and bright blue eyes. Something about the young girl's eyes made a breath catch in Dinah's throat. There was something extremely familiar about those eyes, something that brought her back to a heart breaking moment from five years ago. She'd seen that look of pride fall into a look of tragic remorse before. A sudden motherly urge overwhelmed Dinah. She wanted to hug this girl harder than she'd ever hugged anyone.

"I'm sorry I hit you with a dart," the young girl mumbled embarrassed, as she tugged at her dress. That piercing blue gaze was now starting at the ground. Dinah couldn't help but smile. She noticed a small, Nerf brand, bow and arrow in her hand, complete with the form darts, stuffed haphazardly in her tiny dress pockets.

"That's alright, you didn't hurt me," Dinah answered. "You're a pretty good shot with that bow."

"Really?" A big toothy grin spread across her face. Dinah chucked softly.

"Yes, really. My name is Dinah Lance, what's yours?"

"Rowena Harriett Martin, but everyone calls me Rowie," she puffed up proudly. "And I just turn five three days ago." She held up five fingers.

"Three days ago, on New Years Day? Happy Birthday."

"Uh-huh," the girl beamed even brighter with the attention. Grown-ups never wanted to be her friend. "My Mummy says I'm the best New Years gift ever, even if I was born too early."

"So, Rowie, where'd you learn to shoot a bow like that?" The girl looked down at her hands and held up the bow and darts.

"I've never learned how to shoot. I stole this from Charlie."

"Charlie?"

"He's my stupid big brother, he's nine, and stupid. But he got this for Christmas, and I stole it from him."

"How'd you know how to use it?"

"I don't know," Rowena shrugged her shoulders. "I just did, and Charlie kept daring me to hit things, so I did."

"Just like that?" Dinah was astonished.

"Just like that."

"That's… amazing!"

"Really? Want to see what else I can hit?" The child strung the toy dart onto the plastic string. "I can hit that." Dinah looked up and saw the girl pointing to a can of loose leaf tea on the highest shelf in the department store.

"You're on!"

The girl took aim and, with an expert eye, knocked the tea tin off the shelf. The big blue eyes looked up with unmeasured pride. Dinah was speechless for a moment.

"See," the girl bragged"

"Rowena Harriett!" The shrill voice called. Pride, once again, morphed into remorse. "I can't take you anywhere."

"I'm sorry Mummy," Rowena squeaked out again.

"We're going home right now! Daddy will hear of this, and you'll be without sweeties for at least a week."

"Yes, Mummy." The child turned to go back with the now fuming mother.

"Rowie wait," Dinah called before she lost this girl forever. "Keep practicing, you are quite gifted with that that bow and arrow."

"Uh, thanks, I will." Dinah winked at the girl, and she managed a small smile through her embarrassment.

"I'm sure I'll see you again in a few years when you get older."

"Really?"

"I know it. Talent like that doesn't go unnoticed."

The girl ran off and hope filled Dinah. She left the pack of biscuits on a random shelf and walked the block back to the apartment her boyfriend rented for the Holidays.

Ollie did not want to spend another Christmas and New Years in the Watchtower any longer. There were too many agonizing memories of what was lost, and of his failures to find. All his protégé's… Artemis had dropped out of the hero business. She wanted to become an ordinary college student, with Wally. Dinah couldn't blame them; they had a real chance at a normal life. Some days the hero gig even took a toll on her, and Dinah had a much longer time learning to cope. But death, well, it changes everyone differently. First Roy, then Tula, and then Jason… there were only kids, talented beyond anything ordinary, but children none the less.

Jim Harper, Guardian, had gone off the radar almost a year ago looking for the real Roy, and Ollie felt guilty for giving up. What was the point? It was easier just to accept that Roy was gone. He was buried in the Queen Family Plot for crying out loud. Ollie just needed to move on.

Dinah walked up with a surprising, and dazzling smile. A look Ollie had not seen in a while.

"They had good biscuits I take it?" He replied. His wrinkles were now creeping up along the edges of his eyes. He smiled and tried to sound jovial, but there was a now permanent exhaustion behind it. She stopped.

"Oh, the biscuits, I completely forgot them," she sighed. He looked her over questioning.

"Are you alright?" Ollie asked, standing up and placing an arm around his girlfriend.

"Ollie, do you believe people's souls can be reborn?"

"Like reincarnation, no not really. Why?" She looked down hesitant, and he lifted her chin gently.

"Because I swear I met Roy today, not Roy exactly, but his reincarnation. It made me feel so, contented, for a moment, like he's moved on and has a happy life."

"Really?"

"Yes, she had his eyes and everything… Oliver, she hit me smack between the eyes with a Nerf dart. I've only seen marksmanship in one other person…"

"Roy…"

"Yes, it was indescribable. When I asked her where she learned it, she didn't, it just came to her one day. Is this even possible?"

"We have alien coworkers, anything is possible."

"She even seemed to have some of his cockiness, and humility. There's no other explanation…"

"I need to meet her then, maybe foster this ability."

"Not yet, Ollie, she's only…"

"Five years old…"

"Yes, how did you…"

"Cause it was five years ago."

"Right. She has a normal family, though…. Mother, Father, even an older brother, we can't take her away from that." He sighed and looked around. He knew Dinah was right. "But she's a local girl, name's Rowena Martin."

"Yeah, I'll look her up when we get back to the Watchtower. At least I can keep an eye on her. If she's as talented as you say, I'm sure one day she'll look for guidance. Who knows what could happen in five, even ten years from now, I'm sure we'll meet. If his soul moved on, I wonder if we'll ever meet some of our colleges again?"

"Anything is possible."


End file.
